page_title: Antwerp
section_title: Buildings and landmarks
hierarchical_section_title: Antwerp / Buildings and landmarks
caption_attribution_description: Deutsch: Renaissancebauten in Flandern, 16. Jahrhundert (erneuert nach 1945)
context_page_description: Antwerp is a city in Belgium and the capital of Antwerp province in the Flemish Region. With a population of 520,504, it is the most populous city proper in Belgium, and with a metropolitan population of around 1,200,000 people, it is the second largest metropolitan region after Brussels.
  Antwerp is on the River Scheldt, linked to the North Sea by the river's Westerschelde estuary. It is about 40 kilometres north of Brussels, and about 15 kilometres south of the Dutch border. The Port of Antwerp is one of the biggest in the world, ranking second in Europe and within the top 20 globally. The city is also known for its diamond industry and trade.
  Both economically and culturally, Antwerp is and has long been an important city in the Low Countries, especially before and during the Spanish Fury and throughout and after the subsequent Dutch Revolt. The Bourse of Antwerp, originally built in 1531 and re-built in 1872, was the world's first purpose-built commodity exchange. It was founded before stocks and shares existed, so was not strictly a stock exchange.
context_section_description: In the 16th century, Antwerp was noted for the wealth of its citizens ("Antwerpia nummis"). The houses of these wealthy merchants and manufacturers have been preserved throughout the city. However, fire has destroyed several old buildings, such as the house of the Hanseatic League on the northern quays, in 1891. During World War II, the city also suffered considerable damage from V-bombs, and in recent years, other noteworthy buildings have been demolished for new developments.
  Antwerp Zoo opened in 1843 and is one of the oldest in the world.
  Antwerp City Hall dates from 1565, and is built primarily in Renaissance style.
  Antwerp Central Station is a railway station designed by Louis Delacenserie which was completed in 1905.
  Cathedral of Our Lady. This church was begun in the 14th century and finished in 1518. The church has four works by Rubens, viz. "The Descent from the Cross", "The Elevation of the Cross", "The Resurrection of Christ" and "The Assumption"
  St. James' Church, is more ornate than the cathedral. It contains the remains of numerous famous nobles, among them a major part of the family of Rubens.
  The Church of St. Paul has a baroque interior. It is a few hundred yards north of the Grote Markt
  St. Andrew's Church
  St. Charles Borromeo Church
  Museum Vleeshuis (Butchers' Hall) is a fine Gothic brick-built building, situated a short distance to the North-West of the Grote Markt.
  Plantin-Moretus Museum preserves the house of the printer Christoffel Plantijn and his successor Jan Moretus
  The Saint-Boniface Church is an Anglican church and headseat of the archdeanery North-West Europe.
  Boerentoren (Farmers' Tower) or KBC Tower, a 26-storey building built in 1932, is the oldest skyscraper in Europe. It is the tallest building in Antwerp and the second tallest structure after the Cathedral of our Lady. The building was designed by Emiel van Averbeke, R. Van Hoenacker and Jos Smolderen.
  Royal Museum of Fine Arts
  Museum Mayer van den Bergh, with works from the Gothic and Renaissance period in the Netherlands and Belgium, including paintings by Pieter Brueghel the Elder.
  Rubenshuis is the former home and studio of Peter Paul Rubens (1577–1640) in Antwerp. It is now a museum.
  Rockox House is the former 17th-century Residence of Nicolaas II Rockox, Mayor of Antwerp.
  Bourse of Antwerp. Originally built 1531; extensively restored 1872; now Antwerp Trade Fair.
  Palace of Justice, designed by the Richard Rogers Partnership, Arup and VK Studio, and opened by King Albert II, in April 2006. This building is the antithesis of the heavy, dark court building, designed by Joseph Poelaert, which dominates the skyline of Brussels. The courtrooms sit on top of six fingers that radiate from an airy central hall, and are surmounted by spires, which provide north light and resemble oast houses or the sails of barges on the nearby River Scheldt. It is built on the site of the old Zuid ("South") station, at the end of a magnificent 1.5 kilometres (1 mile) perspective at the southern end of Amerikalei. The road neatly disappears into an underpass under oval Bolivarplaats to join the motorway ring. This leaves peaceful surface access by foot, bicycle or tram (route 12). The building's highest 'sail' is 51 m (167 ft) high, has a floor area of 77,000 m² (830,000 sq ft), and cost €130 million.
  Zurenborg, a late-19th-century Belle Époque neighbourhood, on the border of Antwerp and Berchem, with many Art Nouveau architectural elements. The area counts as one of the most original Belle Époque urban expansion areas in Europe.
  Museum aan de Stroom
  Den Botaniek or Antwerp's Botanical Garden, created in 1825. Located in the city centre, at the Leopoldstraat, it covers an area of almost 1 hectare.
  Harmonium Art museuM, a museum on pump organs in Klein-Willebroek
  Museum of Contemporary Art (M HKA)
caption: 16th-century Guildhouses at the Grote Markt
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